Chapter 15: Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Question 1

evidence based medicine

Answer 1

an approach to health care that promotes three things:

collection
interpretation
integration

of the best research-based evidence in making decisions about the care of individual patients

Question 2

conventional medicine (Western or allopathic)

Answer 2

health care as practiced by holders of MD and DO (doctor of osteopathic medicine) degrees and by allied professionals, including physical therapists, psychologists, and registered nurses

Question 3

osteopathic medicine

Answer 3

branch of American medicine with a distinct philosophy and approach to patient care

form of medical practice that provides all the benefits of conventional allopathic medicine, including prescription drugs and surgery, and emphasizes the interrelationship between the structure and function of the human body

focus is mainly on the joints, spine, and muscles. The aim is to positively effect the body’s circulatory, lymphatic, an nervous systems

Question 4

doctor of osteopathic medicine

Answer 4

receives the same basic four years of medical education as a doctor of medicine, followed by three to eight years of graduate medical education.

DOs practice a “whole person” approach to health care and receive special training in the musculoskeletal system to understand better how that system influences the condition of all other body systems

They are also trained to identify and correct structural problems, which presumably assists the body’s natural tendency toward health and self-healing.

Question 5

alternative medicine

Answer 5

a broad range of health care practices that are not taught in medical schools, not generally used in hospitals, and not usually reimbursed by insurance companies

Many of these practices are considered to be a part of holistic medicine

Question 6

holistic medicine

Answer 6

approach to medicine that considers physical, emotional, spiritual, social, and psychological well-being of the person

the boundaries between alternative medicine and conventional medicine are not absolute and may change over time, as specific interventions are subjected to clinical trials and become more widely accepted

Question 7

establishing a category of unconventional medicine

Answer 7

some alternative methods have been around for a very long time; the term complementary medicine is actually more appropriate for those methods because it emphasizes that many “alternative medicines” are best used in conjunction with - rather than instead of - regular medicine

i.e., the combined effects of drug and relaxation-training interventions for hypertension exceeds the effects of each individual treatment alone

Question 8

complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)

Answer 8

the use and practice of therapies or diagnostic techniques that fall outside conventional biomedicine

Question 9

Three ideals of CAM

Answer 9

provide health treatment that is:

natural
holistic
promotes wellness

Question 10

integrative medicine

Answer 10

a multidisciplinary approach to medicine that involves traditional biomedical interventions, as well as complementary and alternative medical practices that have been proven both safe and effective

Question 11

vitalism

Answer 11

the concept of a general life force, popular in some varieties of complimentary and alternative medicine

Question 12

traditional Chinese medicine

Answer 12

an ancient, integrated herb-and acupuncture-based system of healing founded on the principle that internal harmony is essential for good health

Question 13

what constitutes evidence?

Answer 13

biomedical researchers demand evidence from controlled clinical trials, in which treatments that are effective in eradicating or controlling individual pathogens are isolated

CAM practitioners, whose therapies are based on a more holistic philosophy, claim that treatment variables cannot always be studied independently

Question 14

nocebo

Answer 14

a harmless substance that nevertheless creates harmful effects in a person who takes it

Question 15

acupuncture

Answer 15

a component of traditional Oriental medicine in which fine needles are inserted into the skin to relieve pain, treat addiction, and promote health

Question 16

hypnosis

Answer 16

a social interaction in which one person (the hypnotist) suggests to another that certain thoughts, feelings, perceptions, or behaviors will occur

Question 17

mindfulness meditation

Answer 17

the practice of paying nonjudgemental in-the-moment attention to changing perceptions and thoughts

Question 18

tai chi

Answer 18

a form of moving meditation that blends exercise, dance, and concentration, and is a component of traditional Oriental medicine

Question 19

yoga

Answer 19

a movement-based form of relaxation and meditation that combines diet, physical postures, and breathing to promote physical and spiritual well-being

Question 20

biofeedback

Answer 20

a system that provides audible or visible feedback information regarding involuntary physiological states

it is based on the principle that we learn to perform a specific response when we receive information (feedback) about the consequences of that response and then make appropriate adjustments

2 types are EMG and thermal biofeedback

Question 21

heart rate variability (HRV)

Answer 21

the normal and healthy variation in the rate at which the heart beats

Question 22

naturopathic medicine

Answer 22

the system that aims to provide holistic health care by drawing from SEVERAL TRADITIONAL HEALING SYSTEMS

including homeopathy, herbal remedies, and traditional Oriental medicine

Question 23

probiotics

Answer 23

bacteria that help maintain the natural balance of organisms (microflora) in the intestines and help promote a healthy digestive system

Question 24

shaman

Answer 24

a general term used for the practitioner of folk medicine who often uses herbs an a range of rituals to effect cures; also referred to as “medicine man” or “medicine woman.”